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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: field · kick · court · fall · firm · pit · nail · tear

  1. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. field — farmland
  3. firm — decided
  4. kick — in football
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. tear — from crying
  8. fall — to drop
  9. court — for sport
  10. field — for sport
  11. firm — steady
  12. tear — to rip
  13. tear — from crying
  14. fall — to drop
  15. court — of a king
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. firm — a company
  18. fall — the season
  19. pit — in a race
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. pit — a hole
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. field — a subject
  24. court — of law

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com